Winter Returns

Chapter 172 "Longing and Yearning" (Bonus Chapter 2, Please Vote!)

"Let me ask you something, are point-and-shoot cameras expensive?"

"Why do you suddenly think of asking this?"

This time, he and Ruoping were the last to walk.

"Today I met a lady with a point-and-shoot camera who took a picture of me. Before I knew it, she had already taken the picture. She said it was a candid shot on the street, and of course she could only keep the photo with my permission. I don't really know much about it, but I thought it was pretty nice, so I let her have it."

Ruoping regained some of her strength.

real or fake.

Zhang Shutong thought to himself, "I think I can guess who the older sister Ruoping is talking about is, but how come you all met her but I didn't?"
That makes sense, though, since the port is in the north and the residential area is also in the north. They probably met around the time Ruoping was leaving home.

However, when he received this news, he was underground again. Zhang Shutong glanced at the ceiling:
"and then?"

"Then I found it quite interesting, much clearer than a mobile phone, and if it weren't too expensive, I'd like to buy one too."

“Then buying second-hand is more suitable,” Zhang Shutong said. “When you have time, you can go to the city to take a look. I remember there is a street that specializes in selling small items.”

"You're free today, incredibly free. Well, I'd like to ask why I'm here?" Ruoping said fiercely.

Zhang Shutong had no choice but to pretend he hadn't heard it.

It was already 11 o'clock when they returned to the tunnel. This time, everyone's enthusiasm was much lower. Exploring was one thing, and cleaning up the debris was another. Ruoping said that it would be better for them to go to the construction site and work as laborers for a day, at least they would be provided with meals. Zhang Shutong actually thought it made a lot of sense.

Zhang Shutong also felt that they were making things difficult for themselves, but it was the last day of the week. He couldn't be sure that the thing that the Wild Dog had missed was the basement, but there were no other clues at the moment. After thinking it over, he felt that he had to clear out the tunnel before he could feel at ease.

Zhang Shutong simply thought that if he could clear out this tunnel, he would reward himself with a day off in the afternoon and go for a bike ride around the streets. Of course, it was too early to talk about this now; it was just wishful thinking.

They came up twice more along the way.

The cleaning speed has slowed down significantly, partly due to declining physical strength, and partly because as more debris is cleared out, it often requires moving quite far to make room for movement.

Zhang Shutong still couldn't tell whether what was blocking the bottom of the tunnel was a wall or a platform. The platform had already cleared two decimeters, but there was still no end in sight.

In the end, because space had been cleared on the table to sit down, even Ruoping joined in. She could only move lighter wooden planks and bricks, and each time she went to work, she had to change into Zhang Shutong's down jacket first. After working until she was panting, she would step back to change back into her clothes and use a flashlight. Zhang Shutong thought to herself that she was really putting Ruoping through the wringer.

The girl was really on the verge of tears, and of course he wasn't much better off. Zhang Shutong didn't dare to use his newly healed left arm to exert force, so he could only use his right hand, and soon he felt his muscles twitching.

Zhang Shutong was replaced again. He was wearing Ruoping's white down jacket and was providing lighting for Ruoping and Lu Qinglian from behind.

"How about we go eat first?" Zhang Shutong asked, taking the wooden stick Qingyi handed him.

Before he could finish speaking, Ruoping suddenly screamed. She quickly covered the back of her neck and jerked her head up, slamming it against the stone wall above her with a loud thud. The impact was quite severe. By the time Zhang Shutong reacted, Ruoping's gaze was already shifting between himself and Qingyi. Finally, Ruoping looked at him in a panic, forgetting to speak, her large eyes filled with tears.

Zhang Shutong's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly asked how he was. Qingyi also hurriedly went over to him.

"What happened?"

"Something fell into the back of my neck," Ruoping said, her voice trembling with tears.

Zhang Shutong shone his flashlight upwards and was immediately startled. Those were clearly maggots that had just hatched on the cave wall. He didn't know why they had gotten above their heads, or rather, they hadn't gotten above their heads, but rather that the maggot eggs had been pushed to the highest point by the debris and made their home on the cave wall. Now that the debris had been cleared away, they had finally fallen down.

But how could Zhang Shutong dare tell Ruoping? If Ruoping found out, it wouldn't be as simple as just crying. So he could only comfort her, saying it was okay, it was just mud, don't cry, he would wipe it off for her right away...

As he spoke, Zhang Shutong gave a wink, and Qingyi shone the flashlight over. He looked closely and saw a small clump of maggots tangled together on the girl's neck. Zhang Shutong grabbed the maggots so quickly he almost crushed them. He didn't even bother to wipe his hands before patting her head with his other hand.
"Okay, okay, how's your head? Where did you bump it?"

Ruoping didn't say whether it hurt or not; she just pouted and said:

"I quit……"

Qingyi hurriedly chimed in, "We absolutely won't do it anymore. Anyone who does it again is a dog. Let's go back and eat."

Finally, Lu Qinglian helped Ruoping up, and the two boys walked ahead to clear the way. Zhang Shutong and Qingyi exchanged a glance, both able to see the helplessness in each other's eyes.
"This time it was my fault, I didn't look up..."

"Actually, it's my fault. I was the closest to her..."

"Never mind," Zhang Shutong sighed. "Let's not talk about that for now. Think about what we're going to eat later. I'll go out and buy her some milk tea."

"Let's eat at Du Kang's house?"

"That works too. Maybe Du Kang can make her laugh."

Once they were finally back on the ground, Zhang Shutong got on her bike and was about to ride off—there was a small shop selling drinks across from the hospital, and Qingyi gently asked her what she wanted to eat, but Ruoping said she wasn't going anywhere and wanted to go home to take a shower.

Zhang Shutong stopped, intending to wait for her to recover before speaking, but Ruoping was determined to go home. Zhang Shutong didn't know how bad her head injury was; he guessed it wasn't broken, but there might be a big bump. It was too dark down there, and he wanted to go and take a closer look, but Ruoping hid behind Lu Qinglian.

She is also a girl with a strong sense of self-respect.

Zhang Shutong was at her wit's end. Finally, Lu Qinglian whispered a few words, and when she turned around again, she had already made her decision:
"Take her home."

She said it in a certain tone.

Zhang Shutong and Qingyi exchanged glances again. Despite Ruoping's usually fiery personality, she was difficult to comfort once she cried. Even though she was easy to comfort, Zhang Shutong didn't know how to comfort girls. Both of them were a little at a loss. In the end, Lu Qinglian took her on her bicycle, and the three of them went back to Ruoping's neighborhood together. Ruoping's mother opened the door, and Ruoping entered the house with red eyes.

"Oh, you child..." Ruoping's mother said, then realized something was wrong. Zhang Shutong explained the situation. "I'll go check on you. You three, come inside and sit down..."

But how could they possibly go in? The three of them, no longer wanting to cause trouble, took their leave.

"Going to eat?" Zhang Shutong asked. To be honest, the group had gone on quite a few "adventures" together, but this was the first time something like this had gone wrong. Usually, it was the three boys who would get hurt, and they would just catch their breath and get over it.

"Actually, I'm going home for lunch." Qingyi said with a bit of worry, "My mom has been complaining that I'm never home lately."

What about in the afternoon?

"Let's not come out for now." Qingyi was a little discouraged. "I just reflected on it, and we were indeed too hasty. Even if we left that tunnel alone, it wouldn't run away. She said she wanted to go back several times, but I kept fooling her."

"Let's call and apologize together later," Zhang Shutong said, patting his shoulder.

"I'm off now." Qingyi got on her bike. "Be careful on the road."

Zhang Shutong watched him leave.

I glanced at the time and realized it was already past noon.

"Thank you for earlier." Zhang Shutong thought for a while but didn't know what to say.

"It's alright." Lu Qinglian had already turned her head. "You should have been prepared for this earlier."

Zhang Shutong nodded to acknowledge his mistake.

No one wanted to do manual labor on the weekend. Qingyi was driven by curiosity, the most so of the four. Ruoping was innocently dragged into doing manual labor. It was more out of friendship than interest, but ultimately, they didn't have any compelling reason to do it, unlike themselves and Lu Qinglian.

"It was indeed something I overlooked." This time they didn't ride bikes; Zhang Shutong pushed his bike and said, "It's still different after all."

"At least they didn't make any major mistakes."

"Don't let them go." Zhang Shutong glanced at the sun in the sky. "Shall we go eat first?"

"it is good."

There is no shortage of small restaurants near residential areas.

Zhang Shutong carefully selected a restaurant that served braised chicken. Actually, Lu Qinglian had also gone through a lot of trouble, so he specially ordered three extra chicken legs. When it came time to pay the bill, Zhang Shutong was about to take out his change when Lu Qinglian handed the owner a fifty-yuan note.

Of course, she wasn't as generous as Gu Qiumian, who could simply say, "No need to look anymore."

Lu Qinglian put the change she got back into a small cloth bag, which was probably a wallet she had sewn herself.

“You don’t really need to be so polite,” Zhang Shutong said.

"I've already asked you to pay for the medical expenses, the phone bill, and the phone credit. I've already told you that this isn't right."

Zhang Shutong understood that she was referring to spending her own money.

"The phone wasn't a gift from me; it was a prize from the police station, so it was originally yours. As for the phone bill, it was my mom's way of expressing her gratitude, but I think it's insignificant. As for the medical expenses, I think it was just a coincidence."

"Whatever," Lu Qinglian said noncommittally.

Zhang Shutong thought for a moment. A meal cost more than thirty yuan, so there was no need to fight with her to pay the bill. She was just a little curious about where Lu Qinglian got so much money, including the time she called an ambulance. If she had living expenses, she wouldn't be eating cold rice every day.

Perhaps it was the money I originally brought with me to top up my phone credit?
Thinking of this, Zhang Shutong asked a question and received confirmation from Lu Qinglian.

Soon the rice bowls were served, and the two of them ate in silence. Lu Qinglian hardly spoke while eating; she ordered a bowl of fish-flavored eggplant rice and savored the taste of the food carefully.

Zhang Shutong wasn't in the mood to talk, but then his phone rang again—it was a QQ call. Zhang Shutong's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly picked up the phone, then rolled his eyes.

It was Du Kang's video call.

Du Kang's face appeared in the picture:
"Shutong, why didn't Ruoping answer my call?"

Zhang Shutong thought to himself, "Speak of the devil, and he appears!" He recounted what had happened at noon, but Du Kang shook his head and sighed.
"Hey, you should have said so earlier. I could have just switched her with you. I'm so bored in this restaurant. Okay, leave it to me. I'll go to her house to find her in a bit."

"Why are you looking for her?" Zhang Shutong finally remembered to ask.

"Oh, she told me this morning that she met a woman and exchanged contact information. She said she took a picture of her, and now a group of guests have just arrived, and I wanted to meet her. Look—"

As Du Kang turned the camera around, it was clear that he was squatting behind his counter, carefully peeking out a section of his phone. Even before Zhang Shutong could see the content on the screen, his heart skipped a beat.

At a table not far away sat a group of six teenagers who looked like high school students. They were clinking glasses with their juice, and the group was in high spirits. One girl, dressed in a white floral dress, was surrounded by the others and had a gentle smile.

Zhang Shutong glanced at it and then looked away. He was about to tell Du Kang to stop taking pictures, lest someone discover them, but before he could speak—

The girl turned her head as if by some strange twist of fate, and Zhang Shutong saw her looking at him through the camera.

Smiled softly.

(End of this chapter)